Digital Commons Network^™

Exploring The Roles Of Physiology And Phylogeny In Novel Signal Evolution, Mia E. Phillips

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

In animal communication, signal phenotypes are shaped by a combination of selective

forces pushing for improved transmission, efficiency, and detection, and limited by

developmental constraints in signal production and reception abilities (Morton 1975; Guilford &

Dawkins 1991; Endler 1992; Davranoglou et al. 2023). These opposing forces have resulted in

communication strategies that are broadly diverse yet similar among closely related species. We

expect to see gradual changes in signal phenotypes across different clades (Harvey & Pagel

1991). Sometimes, though, the communication strategies of closely related taxa are drastically

different (Ligon et al. 2018), indicating that selection must have overcome the …

Origin, Regulation, And Function Of Bone Marrow Adipose Tissue And Implications For Bone Health, Xiao Zhang

McKelvey School of Engineering Graduate Student Theses & Dissertations

Bone marrow adipose tissue (BMAT) is a unique fat depot located within the skeletal system that takes up a large portion of the total bone marrow volume and contains tremendous amounts of energy that can be potentially utilized to fuel the body. However, largely attributed to its strong resistance to lipolytic stimuli and its persistent accumulation in various physiological and pathological conditions, the exact function of BMAT within the bone and how it is regulated throughout the body remains largely unclear. This dissertation sought to better understand the unique role of BMAT within the bone marrow niche by first reviewing …

Chronic Stress And Well-Being: Testing Mindfulness As A Proposed Method To Decrease Stress In Parents Of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Madeline M. Gillies

Theses and Dissertations

Parenting is a demanding role that encompasses many responsibilities and challenges. When a child is diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, there are additional demands on the parent's time, energy, and financial resources, which likely leads to increased levels of chronic stress for parents. This dissertation examines the differences in chronic stress levels between parents who have children with autism and parents who do not, using hair cortisol concentration (HCC) as a benchmark. This dissertation also explores reducing parental stress by introducing a mindfulness intervention. Participants (n = 68) were recruited and divided into two groups: Parents of children who have …

Engineering Cell-Free Protein Synthesis Biosensors For Point Of Care Use, Tyler Jordan Free

Theses and Dissertations

Diagnostic tests can dramatically improve and save lives. Survival rates and patient outcomes related to cancer and other diseases can be improved when routine testing guides personalized treatment. Highly accurate laboratory tests exist for thousands of biomarkers, including those of interest in this dissertation, but cost and complexity limit access to life-saving lab tests in many cases throughout the world. To fill this need and increase accessibility of diagnostics, in this report we report our engineering advancements towards portable biosensors for colorimetric detection of glutamine, endocrine disrupting compounds (EDC), and pathogenic RNA which are key biomarkers in cancer treatment monitoring, …

Opioid-Induced Changes To Pregnancy Outcomes And Placental Structure In Rat Models, Ayla Young, Isaac Adediji, Hager Kowash, Vicki Schaal, Gurudutt Pendyala, Lynda Harris

Posters: 2024 Summer Undergraduate Research Program

Maternal opioid-use disorder (MOUD) is a growing national health problem and the number of affected births quadrupled between 1999 and 2014.¹ MOUD is correlated with abnormal placental trophoblast proliferation and villous vascularization, suggestive of chronic hypoxia and poor vascular integrity.² Such damage to the placenta can be extremely disruptive, not only because of the placenta’s role in providing oxygen to the developing fetus, but also because of the placenta-brain axis, which modulates fetal brain development.³ MOUD may cause neurodevelopmental alterations via direct changes to the fetal brain or via indirect opioid-induced placental dysfunction which disrupts the placenta-brain …

The Correlation Between Social Work Encounters And Health Outcomes In Children With Cystic Fibrosis, Sophia A. St Marie, Heather M. Thomas Md

Posters: 2024 Summer Undergraduate Research Program

Purpose: The objective of this study is to evaluate the impact social workers have on the health of children with cystic fibrosis and to see if an increased number of social work encounters is an indicator of poor health in these children.

Methods: The electric medical record (EPIC) was used to collect data on 193 patients born between 2000 and 2024 (0 to 23 years). Data from June 1, 2019, to June 1, 2024 (or birth to June 1, 2024) was considered. Physical information, namely age (months and years), mutation (homozygous, heterozygous, or other), BMI (or weight/length) percentile …

Tyrphostin (Ag-879) Decreases Akt Activation Through Ngfr Inhibition In Human Glioblastoma Cell Lines, Olivia M. Buchweitz, Poonam Yadav, Indumati Ramireddy, Raghupathy Vengoji, Surinder K. Batra, Nicole Shonka

Posters: 2024 Summer Undergraduate Research Program

Glioblastoma is an aggressive malignant brain cancer with a dismal 5-year survival rate of 6.9%. Despite current treatments – surgical resection, radiation, and chemotherapy – GBM remains incurable, highlighting the urgent need for more effective targeted therapies. Nerve Growth Factor Receptor (NGFR) plays a key role in the maintenance and growth of gliomas and is upregulated during GBM progression. Tyrphostin (AG-879), an inhibitor of TrkA in the NGFR pathway, was investigated in this study. We hypothesized that NGFR contributes to GBM progression by promoting proliferation and its pharmacological targeting will inhibit GBM growth. The objective was to determine the impact …

Green Synthesis Of Carbonized Chitosan-Fe3o4-Sio2 Nano-Composite For Adsorption Of Heavy Metals From Aqueous Solutions, Dalia A. Ali Eng, Rinad Galal Ali Eng.

Chemical Engineering

Water pollution with heavy metals owing to industrial and agricultural activities have become a critical dilemma to humans, plants as well as the marine environment. Therefore, it is of great importance that the carcinogenic heavy metals present in wastewater to be eliminated through designing treatment technologies that can remove multiple pollutants. A novel green magnetic nano-composite called (Carbonized Chitosan-Fe3O4-SiO2) was synthesized using Co-precipitation method to adsorb a mixture of heavy metal ions included; cobalt (Co2+), nickel (Ni2+) and copper (Cu2+) ions from aqueous solutions. The novelty of this study was the synthesis of a new

nano-composite which was green with …

Loss Of Transient Receptor Potential Channel 5 Causes Obesity And Postpartum Depression, Yongxiang Li, Tessa M Cacciottolo, Na Yin, Yang He, Hesong Liu, Hailan Liu, Yuxue Yang, Elana Henning, Julia M Keogh, Katherine Lawler, Edson Mendes De Oliveira, Eugene J Gardner, Katherine A Kentistou, Panayiotis Laouris, Rebecca Bounds, Ken K Ong, John R B Perry, Inês Barroso, Longlong Tu, Jonathan C Bean, Meng Yu, Kristine M Conde, Mengjie Wang, Olivia Ginnard, Xing Fang, Lydia Tong, Junying Han, Tia Darwich, Kevin W Williams, Yongjie Yang, Chunmei Wang, Shelagh Joss, Helen V Firth, Yong Xu, I Sadaf Farooqi

Duncan NRI Faculty and Staff Publications

Hypothalamic neural circuits regulate instinctive behaviors such as food seeking, the fight/flight response, socialization, and maternal care. Here, we identified microdeletions on chromosome Xq23 disrupting the brain-expressed transient receptor potential (TRP) channel 5 (TRPC5). This family of channels detects sensory stimuli and converts them into electrical signals interpretable by the brain. Male TRPC5 deletion carriers exhibited food seeking, obesity, anxiety, and autism, which were recapitulated in knockin male mice harboring a human loss-of-function TRPC5 mutation. Women carrying TRPC5 deletions had severe postpartum depression. As mothers, female knockin mice exhibited anhedonia and depression-like behavior with impaired care of offspring. Deletion of …

63rd Annual Rocky Mountain Conference On Magnetic Resonance

Rocky Mountain Conference on Magnetic Resonance

Final program, abstracts, and information about the 63rd annual meeting of the Rocky Mountain Conference on Magnetic Resonance, co-endorsed by the Colorado Section of the American Chemical Society and the Society for Applied Spectroscopy. Held in the Copper Conference Center, Copper Mountain, Colorado, August 4-8, 2024.

Integrated Reference Single-Cell Rna Seq Atlas Of Healthy Human Female Tissues To Expand The Computational Drug Target Discovery Approaches For Female-Directed Non-Hormonal Contraceptives, Zhanel Nugmanova

Dartmouth College Master’s Theses

The ovary is vital for fertility and the maintenance of endocrine homeostasis. It contains heterogeneous cell populations, including oocyte, granulosa, stromal, endothelial, smooth muscle, and immune cell types. Creating a harmonized dataset that enables cross-tissue comparisons, including the ovary, is essential for identifying genes specific to ovarian cell types and for facilitating drug discovery for contraception and fertility purposes. There are very few resources that allow for the assessment of the expression of potential gene targets across human and mouse tissues for female-directed non-hormonal contraceptives. This is because most of these publicly available datasets are from post-menopausal women. Through our …

Rna Sequencing Reveals Chemotherapy-Induced Changes In Genes Associated With Neurogenesis And Neuronal Function, Bailey Cronin

Theses and Dissertations

Over 310,000 new cases of breast cancer will be diagnosed in 2024, making it the most commonly diagnosed cancer in United States women. Advancements in treatment options such as chemotherapy and radiation have resulted in a 5-year survival rate of 91%. With nearly 4.1 million breast cancer survivors living in the United States today, there is a need for a better understanding of the long-term side effects of these treatments and the impact these may have on the quality of life for these survivors. Reported in up to 78% of cancer patients who received chemotherapy, chemotherapy induced cognitive impairment (CICI), …

Understanding The Mechanisms Of Bio-Effects Of Carbon-Based Nanomaterials In Planta Using “Omics” Approach, Sajedeh Rezaei Cherati

Theses and Dissertations

Carbon-based nanomaterials (CBNs) are recognized as versatile and promising nanomaterials for various applications across multiple fields, including medicine, genetic engineering, plant biology, and agriculture. Notably, carbon nanotubes have been identified as effective in regulating plant growth, reducing plant diseases, and facilitating the targeted delivery of molecules such as DNA and proteins into plant cells and tissues. Despite these advancements, the comprehensive understanding of CBNs' biological impacts, particularly their role in enhancing plant growth and stress tolerance, remains incomplete. Moreover, the use of CBNs in agriculture raises concerns regarding the safety of consuming contaminated plant products and the implications of CBNs …

Improving Stroke Education Scores At A Primary Stroke Center, Jesse J. Young

Master's Projects and Capstones

Abstract

Problem: The COVID-19 pandemic precipitated a significant departure from the nursing profession, leaving healthcare organizations grappling with critical staffing shortages and compromising patient care standards. In 2023, an advanced Primary Stroke Center in a Northern California hospital’s STK-8 scores fluctuated between 80-100%, with an average annual score of 92.8%, putting the facility's primary stroke certification and long-term patient outcomes at risk.

Context: A 24-bed acute stroke and telemetry unit in a Northern California hospital and designated primary stroke center.

Interventions: The following measures were implemented to improve the quality of stroke care and enhance STK-8 compliance, including …

Implementing Maternal Fetal Triage Index (Mfti) In A High-Risk Obstetrical Setting, Erica Bordenkircher Luna

Master's Projects and Capstones

Problem: The Maternal Fetal Triage Index (MFTI) for obstetric triage provides a systematic method for assessing and assigning acuity. Data evaluated for February 2024 and March 2024 identified the need for improved response times for triage Priority Two, which averaged 28.75 minutes (goal 15 minutes) for a provider to present to the bedside. The average percentage of patients with documented MFTI scores was 70.65% ( goal >80%).

Context: A high-risk 24-bed obstetrical department in an acute care hospital in Northern California that triages over 600 patients monthly with over 400 deliveries in the same period.

Interventions: Real-time observations and staff …

Changing Landscape Of Liver Transplant In The United States—Time For A New Innovative Way To Define And Utilize The “Non-Standard Liver Allograft”—A Proposal, Rashmi Seth, Kenneth Andreoni

Department of Surgery Faculty Papers

Since the first liver transplant was performed over six decades ago, the landscape of liver transplantation in the US has seen dramatic evolution. Numerous advancements in perioperative and operative techniques have resulted in major improvements in graft and patient survival rates. Despite the increase in transplants performed over the years, the waitlist mortality rate continues to remain high. The obesity epidemic and the resultant metabolic sequelae continue to result in more marginal donors and challenging recipients. In this review, we aim to highlight the changing characteristics of liver transplant recipients and liver allograft donors. We focus on issues relevant in …

Systemic Activation Of The Axon Degeneration Executioner Sarm1 Triggers Acute Hyperglycemia, Lillian Spatz

Arts & Sciences Graduate Student Theses and Dissertations

Communication between the nervous system and metabolic tissues directs whole body homeostasis. It is well understood that peripheral tissues respond to neural stimulation or inhibition to modulate energy usage and storage, hormone release, and stress pathways, but the neuroendocrine circuits that drive these outcomes remain ill-defined. Our lab identified sterile alpha and TIR motif containing 1 (SARM1) as the central executioner of axon degeneration in injury and disease models. We found that SARM1 is activated by an elevated NMN/NAD+ ratio and that nicotinamide analogs, including 3-AP and vacor, are converted to NMN-like intermediates that directly bind to SARM1, mimicking the …

Effect Of Chemical And Mechanical Weed Control On Weed Seed Banks In Rice Field, Uum Umiyati, Dedi Widayat, Yani Maharani

Jurnal Kultivasi

Weed control is essential for ensuring the diversity of weeds on agricultural land. A study was conducted in rice fields in Subang and Cianjur districts, where 24 fields were observed to have varying weed management approaches. The research employed descriptive methods, including surveys to identify weed types and destructive methods to analyze weed seed banks at different depths. The descriptive methods included surveys to identify weed types and destructive methods to analyze weed seed banks at different depths. Each district contained twelve rice fields that reflected diverse environmental conditions and weed control techniques, yet shared a similar age range of …

Genetic Parameters Of Yield Component And Yield In M1 Rice (Oryza Sativa L.) Generation Irradiated With Gamma-Ray, Agus Riyanto, Eka Oktaviani, Nur Kholida Wulansari, Totok Agung Dwi Haryanto

Jurnal Kultivasi

High-yielding varieties are the primary determinant of the success of increasing Indonesia's rice production. Plant breeding for new high-yielding varieties is possible through mutation induction and selecting desired traits. The effectiveness and efficiency of selection require comprehensive genetic parameters. This study aimed to study the genetic diversity, heritability, genetic advance, and relationship between yield components and yield in the M1 generation of mutant rice irradiated with gamma ray. This research used a factorial randomized complete block design, involving gamma irradiation doses of 100 Gy, 150 Gy, and 200 Gy, as the first factor; and the second factor was the rice …

Growth Improvement Of Immature Quinine By Applying Coffee Husk Compost And Biofertilizer, Yudithia Maxiselly, Dinda Rachmatis Sa'adah, Mira Ariyanti, Muhammad Khais Prayoga, Heri Syahrian Khomaeni

Jurnal Kultivasi

The growth of immature Cinchona ledgeriana can be optimized by applying fertilizers to fill the nutritional needs of plants. Nutrients can be provided through the help of microorganisms derived from organic fertilizers and biofertilizers. This study aims to evaluate the effect of applying coffee husk compost and biofertilizer consortium on the growth of immature quinine plants. This research was conducted from November 2023 – January 2024 at Gambung Tea and Cinchona Research Center, Pasir Jambu District, Bandung Regency, West Java. The research used a randomized block design with four replications and six treatments, namely control (Urea 17 g.plant-1 + SP36 …

The Dna Methylome Of Pediatric Brain Tumors Appears Shaped By Structural Variation And Predicts Survival, Fengju Chen, Yiqun Zhang, Lanlan Shen, Chad J Creighton

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Structural variation heavily influences the molecular landscape of cancer, in part by impacting DNA methylation-mediated transcriptional regulation. Here, using multi-omic datasets involving >2400 pediatric brain and central nervous system tumors of diverse histologies from the Children's Brain Tumor Network, we report hundreds of genes and associated CpG islands (CGIs) for which the nearby presence of somatic structural variant (SV) breakpoints is recurrently associated with altered expression or DNA methylation, respectively, including tumor suppressor genes ATRX and CDKN2A. Altered DNA methylation near enhancers associates with nearby somatic SV breakpoints, including MYC and MYCN. A subset of genes with SV-CGI methylation associations …

Lysineless Hibit And Nanoluc Tagging Systems As Alternative Tools For Monitoring Targeted Protein Degradation, Hanfeng Lin, Kristin Riching, May Poh Lai, Dong Lu, Ran Cheng, Xiaoli Qi, Jin Wang

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Target protein degradation (TPD) has emerged as a revolutionary approach in drug discovery, leveraging the cell’s intrinsic machinery to selectively degrade disease-associated proteins. Nanoluciferase (nLuc) fusion proteins and the NanoBiT technology offer two robust and sensitive screening platforms to monitor the subtle changes in protein abundance induced by TPD molecules. Despite these advantages, concerns have arisen regarding potential degradation artifacts introduced by tagging systems due to the presence of lysine residues on them, prompting the development of alternative tools. In this study, we introduce HiBiT-RR and nLucK0, variants devoid of lysine residues, to mitigate such artifacts. Our findings demonstrate that …

Pan-Cancer Proteogenomics Expands The Landscape Of Therapeutic Targets, Sara R Savage, Xinpei Yi, Jonathan T Lei, Bo Wen, Hongwei Zhao, Yuxing Liao, Eric J Jaehnig, Lauren K Somes, Paul W Shafer, Tobie D Lee, Zile Fu, Yongchao Dou, Zhiao Shi, Daming Gao, Valentina Hoyos, Qiang Gao, Bing Zhang

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Fewer than 200 proteins are targeted by cancer drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). We integrate Clinical Proteomic Tumor Analysis Consortium (CPTAC) proteogenomics data from 1,043 patients across 10 cancer types with additional public datasets to identify potential therapeutic targets. Pan-cancer analysis of 2,863 druggable proteins reveals a wide abundance range and identifies biological factors that affect mRNA-protein correlation. Integration of proteomic data from tumors and genetic screen data from cell lines identifies protein overexpression- or hyperactivation-driven druggable dependencies, enabling accurate predictions of effective drug targets. Proteogenomic identification of synthetic lethality provides a strategy to target tumor …

Antibody Therapies For Alzheimer's Disease, Alexandra Zerr

University Honors Theses

Alzheimer's Disease (AD) is the leading cause of dementia worldwide. Patients with this condition first experience mild cognitive impairment, followed by the loss of memory, cognitive skills, identity, and the ability to perform daily tasks unassisted, eventually culminating in death.

The dominant hypothesis for the mechanism of Alzheimer's, the amyloid cascade hypothesis, based on early-onset AD, suggests that amyloid plaques formed by Aβ peptides cause a cascading effect involving an increase in toxic tau protein, which is correlated with the disease progression of Alzheimer's patients. While the mechanism of late sporadic AD is not fully understood, this has been used …

Binary Gendered Language: A Qualitative Study Of Psu Students, Dakota Abercrombie

University Honors Theses

This study explores experiences of gendered language in use in academia among two marginalized groups: women and those identifying beyond the gender binary. Guided by the theory of linguistic relativity this study attempts to understand specific ways in which gendered language, including generic language may show up and contrasted within these groups. While this data is not generalizable, the findings indicate that both women and nonbinary students experience binary pronoun use in written formats such as syllabi. However, nonbinary students describe more negative feelings associated with this experience. We also noted participants' gender identities intersecting with other identities, leading to …

The Importance Of Experience: Supporting Pupils’ Creative Writing About The Natural World, Christopher Hanley, David Cooper, Jennifer Rowntree

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

The first part of this article considers the challenge of supporting pupils to write creatively about the natural world. It examines a text by a gifted young writer: Diary of a Young Naturalist by Dara McAnulty. It asks what the challenges might be for pupils who maybe motivated to model their writing on McAnulty’s, but have limited experience of the natural world. Drawing on the scholarly work of John Dixon, Robert Eaglestone and others, the article highlights the importance of pupil experience in the formation of their writerly voice, thereby emphasising the need for writing pedagogies that deepen and enrich …

Investigating The Impact Of Semaglutide On Hepatic Oxidative Stress In Obese Male Rats Induced By High-Fat Diet, Duha Haitham Mohammed Alzubaidy, Zahraa Jawad Kadhim Al-Isawi

Maaen Journal for Medical Sciences

Background: The prevalence of obesity is on the rise, and with it comes the burden on healthcare systems due to the increased likelihood of complications such as diabetes, heart disease, hypertension, cancer, and many more. Obesity manifests in the body as an increase in adipose tissue and the production of harmful chemicals by fat cells. One of the pathological changes recorded in obesity is the excessive amount of reactive oxygen species and oxidative stress. An effective medication for oxidative stress and glucose metabolism regulation, including glucose variability is semaglutide. Objective: This study aims to investigate the impact of semaglutide …

Osteoporosis: The Most Common Postmenopausal Women Disorder: A Review, Iman Hussein Naser, Zahraa Abed Al-Kareem, Hiba Salah Mahdi, Amal Umran Mosa, Mazin Hamid Ouda

Maaen Journal for Medical Sciences

Osteoporosis is a common disease affecting both sex ( male and female). It is non-communicable disease characterized by silent and slowly development. That mean it start at several years before diagnosed since it is usually diagnosed when the patient have fractures or bone disease. Osteoporosis can affect people in all countries. For example, 75 millions of patients are European, American, and Japanese. Postmenopausal is the most common cause of developing osteoporosis. That is because the effect of hormonal alterations during this period. Menopausal term is used to describe woman who have amenorrhea for consecutive 12 month or more. Osteoporosis are …

Determination Of Value Adding Macromolecules From Ok-Rong Mango Peel Biomass, Pirawan Chaiwan, Piyachat Sunanta, Cholada Srikawang, Shashanka K. Prasad, Sarana Rose Sommano

International Journal of Health and Allied Sciences

Mango is a significant economic fruit in Thailand, with an annual production of up to 500,000 tonnes. Ok-Rong is a popular mango type in Thailand, known for its higher price compared to other varieties. However, during the processing, biomass accounts for over 50% of the overall weight and causes a serious environmental problem. However, it has the potential to serve as a source of nutritional components, commonly used as additives in functional food. This study aimed to investigate the nutritional value of the peel, including proximate analysis, amino acid profile, and polysaccharide profile. The proximate analysis results indicate that the …

Prevalence Of Alcohol Dependence Among Rural Residents Of Mysuru District: A Community-Based Cross-Sectional Study, Preethi K, Sunil Kumar D, Lekha Shree Alagesan

International Journal of Health and Allied Sciences

Psychoactive substance use, including alcohol and illicit drugs, poses substantial health risks. A community-based study in rural areas of Mysuru district, employed the AUDIT-C score to assess alcohol dependence. The prevalence of alcohol dependence among rural residents was 77.5%, with males (94.8%) exhibiting higher rates than females (5.1%), although not statistically significant (P > 0.05). Sociodemographic factors showed no significant association (P > 0.05) with alcohol consumption. The study underscores the considerable alcohol consumption in rural area of Mysuru, underscoring the need for targeted awareness programs aimed at controlling and preventing alcohol dependence to enhance public health outcomes.